Being Unfolded : Edith Stein on the Meaning of Being

Being Unfolded responds to the question, 'What is the meaning of being for Edith Stein.' In Finite and Eternal Being Stein tentatively concludes that 'being is the unfolding of meaning.' Neither Stein nor her commentators have elaborated much on this suggestive phrase. Thomas Gricoski argues that Stein's mature metaphysical project can be developed into an 'ontology of unfolding.' The differentiating factor of this ontology is its resistance to both existentialism and essentialism. The 'ontology of unfolding' is irreducibly relational. Being Unfolded proceeds by testing a relational hypothesis against Stein's theory of the modes of being (actual, essential, and mental being). From the phenomenological perspective, Gricoski examines Stein's theory of the relation of consciousness and being. From the scholastic perspective, he examines Stein's account of the relation of essence and existence in material being, living being, and human being. And from both perspectives he considers the relation of divine being to actual being and their essences. This book is limited to Stein's theory of the meaning of being, without making an explicit confrontation with Heidegger. It offers two primary contributions to Stein studies: a systematic analysis of Stein's modes of being, especially essential being, and an exposition and expansion of her overlooked concept of unfolding. Being Unfolded also contributes to the broader field of contemporary metaphysics by developing Stein's theory of being as an experiment in fundamental ontology. While other relational ontologies focus on relations between beings, this exploration of unfolding examines being's inner self-relationality. Dedication Epigraph Contents Foreword Preface Abbreviations Introduction One. Correlational Realism Two. The Aporia of Being Three. The Mode of Essential Being Four. The Units of Meaning Five. The Origin of Meaning Six. The Mode of Actual Being Seven. Matter and Meaning Eight. Material Beings Nine. The Mode of Mental Being Ten. Unfolding, Analogy, and Transcendence Conclusion Bibliography Index "From Edith Stein's comment that "being is the unfolding of meaning," the author contends that her understanding of the term is relational and thus resistant to both existentialism and essentialism. He tests his hypothesis against Stein's three modes of being (actual, essential, and mental) from both phenomenological and scholastic perspectives"-- Provided by publisher